Natural capital underpins prosperous economies and thriving societies. Understanding the interconnectedness between business and nature well as the associated risks and opportunities, allows companies to better inform decision-making.
Natural capital underpins prosperous economies and thriving societies. Understanding the interconnectedness between business and nature well as the associated risks and opportunities, allows companies to better inform decision-making.
The introduction of the Natural Capital Protocol last year provided businesses with an important tool for businesses to measure their impacts and dependencies on natural resources. Now, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and the Natural Capital Coalition are making it even easier for businesses to understand their relationships with nature with the launch of the Natural Capital Protocol Toolkit.
“The Toolkit is an important step on the journey to understanding the true cost and true value of business’s impacts and dependencies on nature,” said Peter Bakker, President and CEO at WBCSD. “Understanding natural capital risks and opportunities will help forward-thinking businesses thrive in a world where more sustainable companies continue to become more successful.”
Building on the foundational work of the Protocol, the Toolkit is a free and interactive database of over 50 tools for businesses to use in exploring, experimenting with and carrying out natural capital assessments across their operations. While the Natural Capital Protocol does not recommend specific tools or methodologies, the Toolkit aims to help businesses identify the most appropriate tools for their business context, resources and needs. It will serve as a comprehensive resource for businesses new to natural capital, while allowing more experienced businesses to understand their existing approaches to natural capital in the context of the Protocol framework.
By utilizing the methodologies and tools available in the Toolkit, companies will be better positioned to make progress on their efforts to measure and value their risks and opportunities, so that they can ultimately assess their true costs, profits and value. Over time, the Toolkit will evolve to provide data about which tools are the most commonly used by business, thus helping business leaders understand which methods are most effective.
“Released a year ago to the day, the Natural Capital Protocol is now recognized as the harmonized approach for businesses looking to understand their impacts and dependencies on natural capital. The Natural Capital Protocol Toolkit will further simplify the process of carrying out a natural capital assessment, by providing an up-to-date searchable database of necessary tools presented in the context of the Protocol,” said Mark Gough, Executive Director of the Natural Capital Coalition.
Published Jul 14, 2017 12pm EDT / 9am PDT / 5pm BST / 6pm CEST